Written by: Rtr. Jayani Wickramasinghe

“The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams” -Eleonor Roosevelt

The above quote is the biggest motivation that makes me love the person who I am today. And I’m quite sure many of you out there are also following a big dream that will make life worth living. This is not something limited to a gender, community or a nationality, as humans, with each blink we think about the future and dream all would be fine.

STEM is a combination of different fields like Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics. These are prominent fields where we see equal engagement of both men and women. But even at present there are some circumstances where women have to undergo gender discrimination.

STEM fields have long been dominated by men, but at present we see the engagement of women in many of these fields. It is true that these fields are challenging stereotypes for women to participate in but since ‘nothing is possible until we try’, women have accepted this challenge and are making their mark in these disciplines, breaking barriers and contributing to ground breaking innovations.

In the past women were dedicated to domestic work rather than pursuing education. This mindset was a barrier for women to engage in fields like STEM. But the pioneer Marie Curie fought against gender bias to mark her spot in STEM. Her groundbreaking discovery of the radioactivity and the discovery of the elements Radium and Polonium paved the way for the advancement of the medical field basically for cancer treatment. She was the first woman to win the Nobel prize and the only person to have won in two different scientific fields. In addition Rosalind Franklin, Ada Lovelace, Katherine Johnson are some of the pioneers in different fields of STEM.

With these inspirational characters, at present too we see many females at leading roles in STEM fields who have been recognized as spotlights in those fields. For example Mae Jemison – First African American woman in space, also a physician and engineer. Jennifer Doudna – Co-developed CRISPR gene-editing technology, which revolutionized genetics and medicine (Nobel Prize in Chemistry, 2020).

In order to enhance the engagement of women in the STEM fields, the United Nations has declared 11th of February as the International day of Women and Girls in Science. The objective of celebrating this day is to address and promote gender equality. And also to appreciate the achievements of women in the STEM field. Young girls are inspired to pursue careers in science and technology. Although there is an increase in women entering STEM fields there are certain disparities. According to UNESCO only around 35% of STEM students in higher education globally are women. Out of these, the engagement of women in Engineering and computer science are very low.

It has been a while since I started wondering why men are prioritizing STEM fields over women. Of course it’s not due to lack of interest or ability in women. Girls are equally good at mathematics and science during their early education but as they grow up they tend to deviate from pursuing careers in the STEM fields often due to the lack of role models and societal stereotypes. Also there is a tight competition among the two genders to reach higher positions in their fields. Sometimes women have to face gender bias and underrepresentation in leadership roles which makes them discouraged to get involved in STEM fields. This further contributes to dragging away young girls from these fields.

In the words of Marie Curie, “Nothing in life is to be feared, it is only to be understood. Now is the time to understand more, so that we may fear less.” By embracing this spirit of curiosity and determination, we can build a brighter, more inclusive future for women in STEM. It is the duty of everyone to encourage more and more women to participate in STEM fields by appreciating gender equality and equal chance of earning leadership roles.